Meredith's Pride [Galactic Nuptials 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour ManLove) (5 page)

“You’re really good with the cubs.” Knoton grabbed Jacy and stuck another spoonful of lunch between her open lips.

Mer turned to Yuma and smiled. He wasn’t asleep. His blue eyes were open and seemed focused on Mer. He picked the chubby boy up and draped him over his corded forearm, rubbing up and down his back in a firm motion. After he burped, he continued the massage until he was limp and happy, his little palm resting against his cheek.

“I hope you’re planning on staying with us. They haven’t been this quiet since we left Linnaeus.”

“Where are their mothers?” Before Knoton could answer, the door flew open. Delsin stood in the open doorway, his mouth open and a dazed look in his eyes. “You’re Delsin. I recognize you from your picture.

* * * *

Delsin felt his cock harden as his beast urged him to move closer to the little man. He cleared his throat. “What did you do?” He cringed inwardly when he heard the gruff, accusing sound of his voice.

Mer frowned. “Excuse me?”

“What did you do to the cubs?”

“I, um…I’m sorry. I just couldn’t stand to see them all crying if I could do something to help.”

Delsin shook his head. “No! I want to know what you did to make them stop crying.”

“Oh!” Mer laughed. “It was easy peasy. They just felt insecure and had dirty butts.” He glanced around the room. “I didn’t see any clothes so I just made do with the diapers. They should be warm enough without anything else. This room is like a furnace.” He shrugged. “I’m sorry if I wasn’t supposed to leave the front room, but it seemed more important to get them settled. It’s not healthy for babies to cry for long periods. Where are their mothers?”

Delsin sighed heavily, blinking back the moisture in his eyes. “Our whole pride was slaughtered by a formidable enemy. We’re all that’s left of the Chaarta pride. My brother, our former alpha, sent the cubs away with me so I could hide them from our enemies. They’re my responsibility now.” He breathed in deeply and took a step toward the little man. His scent was enticing, and it was even more potent since Meredith was aroused.

“Alpha, the shuttle is ready.”

Delsin turned and saw Hakan standing in the doorway. He walked over and pushed him out into the hall, lowering his voice to a whisper. “Never mind. Nobody’s been able to handle the cubs since we left home. I think we should keep him around until we can find a replacement.”

Hakan scowled. “That’s not fair to Mer.”

Delsin narrowed his eyes. “It’s my decision, and that’s the way it’s going to be. The cubs’ welfare must come first.”

Hakan’s nostrils flared. “Very well.” His jaw clenching, he turned and walked stiffly toward the front of the house.

Wiping his sweaty hands on his pants, Delsin walked back into the room. As he watched, Mer placed a sleeping Yuma on his stomach and covered his legs with a sheet. He glanced at Knoton and nodded toward the door. His pride mate bowed his head slightly and herded the three young ones out into the hall.

“Where’s he taking the kids?” asked Mer.

“He and Hakan will take them outside to get some fresh air.” He walked over and sat next to Mer on the bed. His eyes closed when his lion pushed against his rib cage.
Mine! Claim mate now!
Delsin pushed the beast back and smiled at Mer. “I’m very impressed with the way you handled the young ones.”

“I guess it comes kind of naturally. I went to college to be a teacher of preschool-age children.”

“So you’re a teacher.”

Mer snorted. “Not hardly.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Where I come from gay men aren’t allowed to teach young children. Hell, they don’t tolerate them teaching college kids if they find out.”

Delsin thought for a moment, worrying his lip with his teeth. “Maybe my translator isn’t working. Your world doesn’t allow happy men to teach children. What the hell kind of thinking is that?”

Mer choked back a laugh. “No, not happy. Gay is my sexual orientation. It means I prefer to have sexual relations with men instead of women.”

“And your world frowns on this.”

“Well, they don’t necessarily frown upon it. At least as long as it stays away from their own back doors. They don’t think it’s morally right for a gay man to teach little children.”

Delsin growled. “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. When a person has the gift of reaching the very young, they should be allowed to practice that gift. I can promise you my people will never look down on you for anything in your personal life. They’ll be grateful for anything you can do to keep our young safe and happy.”

A dull, red flush crept up Mer’s neck. He looked down at his hands. “Um, that’s good to know.” He cleared his throat. “Tell me about your house. It’s furnished kind of weird. Some of it looks like it could be right out of my home town on Earth.”

“This house belongs to my friend, Zintssar from Arridia. He built here when he decided he didn’t want to live on his home planet with his father, but wanted to be close in case his people needed him. We’re actually on one of the moons orbiting Arridia. Zin visited Earth with his father when he was younger and really liked it there. I guess he did his best to recreate the same atmosphere when he designed this place.” Delsin glanced toward the door when he heard Etu’s voice in his head.

Brother, what is going on? Knoton tells me this human performed magic and got the cubs under control, while Hakan tells me you’re dishonoring our contract with our mate. I don’t understand. Where is our lovely mate?

Delsin sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. There was a telepathic connection between pride members that could be blocked if the person so desired. “Etu, please come in and meet Meredith Carter.” He smiled at Mer. “This is my brother, Etu, and you’ve already met Knoton.”

Mer grinned and stood, holding out his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Etu. Most folks call me Mer.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mer.”

Delsin moved toward the door as Etu shook Mer’s hand. “I’m going to show Mer to his room, and then we need to have a meeting. Come along, Mer.” He walked down the hall without waiting to see if Mer followed. He opened the door at the end of the hall and motioned for him to go inside. He silently groaned as his gaze swept the sparse room. A large bed stood against one wall, covered with a dark-brown blanket and a mound of pillows. One small table stood beside it, while sunlight poured in from a naked, open window. Another closed door led to a small bathroom with a shower.

“This is nice.” Mer walked over to look out the window, the steady breeze ruffling the hairs on his head.

“I know you must be tired after your long journey. Why don’t you rest, and we’ll wake you when it’s time for dinner. We can go over the particulars of your staying when everyone’s together.”

Mer sagged against the wall, his hand gripping the windowsill. Before he dropped his gaze, Delsin noticed a suspicious wetness in his eyes. Slowly Mer stood and walked toward the bed. “Sure, just let me know when you want me.”

Delsin shut the door, his lion roaring out his displeasure at leaving his mate. Groaning, he made his way to the office where Etu was pacing back and forth.

“What the hell is going on, Delsin?”

“I screwed up, brother. I take full responsibility for this mess.” Etu continued to pace while Delsin told him how Meredith came to be with them. “I’m sorry, Etu. But I have to say I’m impressed with how he managed the cubs when none of us could.”

Etu stopped and dropped into a chair. “He seems really nice. My lion is really interested. He wanted me to get closer so he could get in a good sniff.” He folded his hands across his stomach. “I’ve been with males, before but I never imagined myself taking a permanent male mate.”

“Me neither. I have to admit he’s attractive, and I know he feels the same way. The smell of his arousal was driving my beast to a frenzy.”

Etu sat up and studied Delsin. “Does this mean we’re going to take a male mate?”

Delsin thought for a moment. “Well…” He got up and walked to the window. “No, I guess not. We need a female to increase the pack. It wouldn’t be fair to the pride to take a male and let Chaarta die out.”

Etu licked his lips, running his fingers through his hair. “What are you going to tell him?”

“Nothing for now. I’ll let him know how much we need his help with the cubs and we want to wait to see how well he gets along with them.”

Etu growled. “That’s not right, Delsin.”

“That’s the way it has to be.”

“My beast wants to be closer to him now. What are you going to do if your beast decides to take matters into his own paws?”

Mer peeked into the children’s room and grinned when he found them all sleeping.
Too bad I don’t have a camera. I’d bet anything they don’t often go down at the same time.
Quietly he closed the door and headed for the kitchen. His dinner the night before had left a lot to be desired. The guys claimed they’d been taking turns in the kitchen, but none of them were really experienced at cooking. He’d nearly wet his pants when Knoton told him they preferred to shift and catch their meals, but there wasn’t much in the way of game on the small moon. The steaks they’d had for dinner had been brought back from Earth. He shuddered when he thought about the tough meat, charred on the outside and raw on the inside. “I’m happy to cook if I don’t have to experience that again.”

Humming slightly out of tune, he pulled a huge slab of bacon from the cooler and began slicing it into thick pieces. He lined them up in a skillet and turned the cooking unit to a low setting. As the meat began to sizzle, he cracked eggs into a large bowl. It had been thoughtful of Knoton to bring back so much food from Earth. It actually gave him a feeling of home to be cooking breakfast for the men.

He’d been disappointed at first when the large lion shifter had said they wanted to take things slow to make sure they were compatible, but after sleeping on it, he was convinced it was the smart thing to do. Mer wanted something that would last, and for that to happen they needed to go slow. Who knew he’d end up with a house full of kids, too? It was the perfect situation. Two hot men and children to dote on. “I can’t believe how things have worked out. I’ve got everything I ever dreamed of.” He heard footsteps coming down the hall as he started turning the slices of bacon.

* * * *

Delsin sniffed the air and came fully awake when the aroma of something tasty settled in his nose. It was his turn to cook, but someone must have taken pity on him and saved him from the arduous chore. He quickly dressed and headed for the kitchen.

He came to a halt just inside the door. Mer was standing in front of the stove, dressed in a pair of shorts and no shirt. He was humming some tune and wiggling his hips in time to the beat. Delsin felt his cock begin to fill, his lion stretching and purring inside him. Swallowing hard, he cleared his throat.

Mer turned around and smiled. “Good morning! Did you sleep well? I figured since you went to the trouble to bring all this food from Earth, I’d give you a hand and cook breakfast for everyone.” He took a step back and bit his lip. “Is that okay?”

Delsin took two steps into the room and smiled. “Absolutely, it’s okay. It smells wonderful.”

“What’s that heavenly smell?” Etu walked through the door, raking his fingers through his hair.
Brother, my lion is fighting me. He wants Mer for a mate, and I’m not sure I can control him.

Delsin looked at the heat in Etu’s eyes and groaned inwardly.
I know what you’re going through. My own beast is determined to claim the little man no matter what I want. We need to fight it, Etu. We need to find a female shifter that’s willing to come live with our pride so we can increase our numbers. Eventually our lions will understand this.

“That smell is the wonderful aroma of bacon, my friend. There’s nothing like starting the day with several thick slices of pig to go with your scrambled eggs.” Mer chuckled and put another pan on the cooking unit. He vigorously stirred a bowl of runny, yellow liquid.

“Man, that smells good.” Hakan walked in, followed closely by Knoton. “When are we eating?”

“Any minute now. “ Mer poured the contents of the bowl into the hot pan. “Take a seat, and I’ll bring your plates to you.” A few minutes later he was setting plates of eggs and bacon in front of each man. “Go ahead and get started. I’m gonna run and check on the babies, and then I’ll come back and join you.”

Delsin watched him walk down the hall and groaned.

“Goddess, this is fantastic.” Knoton shoveled the food in his mouth.

Hakan narrowed his eyes. “For somebody that’s not interested in taking him as a mate, the two of you are almost drooling watching him. What’s going on?”

Knoton snorted. “If you really don’t want him, would you mind if I take a stab at getting him to like me?”

In the blink of an eye, Delsin had Knoton up against the wall with his hands at his throat. “You will keep your paws off of him. Do you understand?”

Etu leaned in close. “We will end your life in a very painful way if you don’t stay away.”

Knoton grinned. “I can see how the two of you don’t really want or care about the little human.”